Inspectors have reiterated their advice that the West of England strategic plan should be withdrawn from examination and said the councils concerned need to "reconsider many fundamental elements" in preparing a new version of the document.

Councillors in West Lancashire have voted to cease work on a local plan review, despite being warned that to do so would delay plan submission by two years, leave the authority without a five year housing land supply, and cost hundreds of thousands of pounds.

Strategic Planning In Depth

Local industrial strategies can provide the basis for councils to go for ambitious levels of housing and employment growth, but development plans will need to allocate land to reflect their priorities, say commentators.

Three authorities have submitted annual position statements to the government under new rules allowing them to secure their housing land supply positions for one year. The councils say they hope the move will let them avoid fighting costly appeals.

An Essex council threatened with intervention by central government for taking too long to prepare its local plan is unlikely to face Whitehall action, say observers, despite little apparent progress in the preparation of its development blueprint in the past six months.

In 2012, the coalition government introduced the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). This focused plan-making at the local and neighbourhood level, with no statutory strategic planning tier following the abolition of regional strategies. Roll forward to 2019 and there is increasing recognition from ministers about the importance of long-term strategic planning to help boost housing supply.